Moody's rates Barry Callebaut notes Baa3

Moody's Investors Service said it assigned a provisional Baa3 rating to Barry Callebaut Services NV's issuance of between €250 million and €300 million of senior notes due up to 2021.

All other ratings, including its issuer rating at Baa3 and the Baa3 rating on the existing €350 million of senior notes due 2017 remain unchanged.

The outlook is stable.

The parent company is Barry Callebaut AG.

Barry Callebaut also said it plans to enter into a new five-year €600 million multi-currency senior revolving credit facility, replacing the existing €850 million revolver due 2012/2013, Moody's said.

The rating on the senior notes reflect an expectation that they will rank pari passu with all other unsecured debt, including the existing €350 million of senior notes and the new senior revolving credit facility.

The proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes and to repay the drawn amount under Barry Callebaut's senior credit revolving facility.

Moody's said it believes that, if successful, the refinancing will diversify the company's sources of liquidity while extending the company's debt maturity profile and increasing the share of fixed-rate debt.

Following the transaction, the company's liquidity facilities are considered sufficient to fund its growth strategy and to cover potentially high levels of working capital due to fluctuations in cocoa prices, the agency said.

The stable outlook reflects an expectation that the company will maintain its solid market position and credit metrics, Moody's added.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.